Tuesday, July 14, 2009

So It's Been Awhile

I have no excuse other than getting sucked into other things like facebook and twitter. Poor abandoned blog!

Besides, getting up at 6 am doesn't make me very lucid, so most posts wouldn't make any sense, hehehe.

Here is what I look like at 6 am.


Although, chances are good that I always look that bewildered, hehehe. Later on in the day I may or may not have brushed my hair.

Monday, April 6, 2009

EGCG Easter Egg Hunt & Giveaway!

Do you love a good Easter egg hunt? How about winning free stuff? Yes to both? Well then, you need to check out the Etsy Green and Clean Guild's Easter Egg Hunt! HINT: There are 14 hidden eggs and ONE of them is in my shop! :D

♥ EGCG Easter Egg Hunt ♥
Would you like to win a wonderful Bath and Body Grab bag, filled with fabulous handmade goods from the members of the Etsy Green and Clean Guild? EGCG will be giving away 3 Grab bags of bath & body products made by some of the EGCG members.

Who can Participate?
You must be an Etsy member to win, both buyers and sellers are welcome!
Members of the Etsy Green and Clean Guild are not eligible to win.

How to play?
Visit each of the participating EGCG shops below and look through the pictures in their shop listings (recent sold items included). Some shops will contain a picture of an "Easter egg" hiding in one of their shop listings (egg picture shown at http://egcgswag.blogspot.com). Search through the participating shops and jot down the listing # and the name of the shop you have found the Easter egg in. (Note: Not all Shops will contain an Easter Egg)

For each correct Easter egg you find, you will receive one entry into a drawing to win a grab bag of bath and body goodies. Please convo me (http://domaly.etsy.com) with your entries and your name. (Please know that each person can only win ONE of the three prizes, but the more entries you have, the higher your chances are)

Contest ends at 12 midnight EST, April 11th. All correct entries will be entered into a drawing and the 3 winners will be selected at random and announced on Monday, April 13th.

The lucky winner will be contacted by ‘convo’ on Etsy and the results will be posted in the forums.
Good Luck and Get started Looking for Those Eggs!

Participating Shops:

http://AlchemicMuse.etsy.com
http://aromaherbals.etsy.com
http://AthenasOliveTree.etsy.com
http://BLSoaps.etsy.com
http://bunnybuttapothecary.etsy.com
http://ceruleabathandbody.etsy.com
http://DarkTemptations.etsy.com
http://Domaly.etsy.com
http://DressGreen.etsy.com
http://faeriemadesoaps.etsy.com
http://GoodEnoughToEatSoap.etsy.com
http://GrumpyGirl.etsy.com
http://IlluminatedPerfume.etsy.com
http://InseineCreations.etsy.com
http://jadewicks.etsy.com
http://JBSoaps.etsy.com
http://JoviaSoap.etsy.com
http://KellesKitchen.etsy.com
http://Magichands.etsy.com
http://MeaCulpaBathandBody.etsy.com
http://MirasolFarm.etsy.com
http://Morganstreet.etsy.com
http://PinkQuartzMinerals.etsy.com
http://PixieSoap.etsy.com
http://RachelRene.etsy.com
http://RightAsRaincreations.etsy.com
http://savor.etsy.com
http://showertreatsoap.etsy.com
http://SkinEssentials.etsy.com
http://SkinJourney.etsy.com
http://SoapKitchen.etsy.com
http://SoapStore.etsy.com
http://southpacificbody.etsy.com
http://SpaTherapyWorks.etsy.com
http://stephaniek.etsy.com
http://SudzNThings.etsy.com
http://SweetCreekHerbs.etsy.com
http://TheBathProject.etsy.com
http://TwinDreamCreations.etsy.com
http://TwoRiversSoaps.etsy.com
http://Urbbody.etsy.com
http://WixandWhacks.etsy.com
http://youstinksoap.etsy.com


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Thursday, April 2, 2009

It's Like Christmas All Over Again!

So says my five-year old, who has been "celebrating" Christmas for three months now. He takes random toys from around the house (believe me, there is plenty to choose from, I swear the stuff is breeding) and "wraps" them in one of Dad's boots (for a stocking, don't you know?) or in one of my dish towels.

Then he "gives" them to his brother or sister or me. By "give" I mean, he says it is for you, then proceeds to unwrap it himself and tell you all about it, but don't you dare actually try to take the toy and play with it!

I finally got so tired of him carrying around his father's boots (of questionable cleanliness) that I went out to the garage and gave him his actual stocking.

Although, I have to admit, think about how much better off our finances would be if I could just wrap up any old thing around the house in a dishtowel and give it to someone as their present - especially if I get to then take it back, wrap it up again, and give it to someone else!

Somehow I think if I tried that at his next birthday, it wouldn't fly.


.

Thursday, March 26, 2009

WWJW - What Would Jesus Watch?

We had dinner at my parents' house last night (Yay Mom for making me a nice dinner when I am so sick!) and my husband drove the boys home in his truck (since he met us there after work) while I took the baby in the van.

He told me that on the way home, Isaac asked if God had DVDs in heaven. My husband said, in typical parental fashion, "What do you think?"

"No, I bet God has On Demand!"


Ahahahahahahahahah!!! I wonder if He watches America's Next Top Model with as much anticipation as the rest of the world? LOL

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

My Knockers and My Virus

There's a title for you!

First off, I've been sick. Really really ill with a head cold/virus/nasty bug thingy. I don't think I've been this sick for this long in over 10 years.

I haven't been able to taste anything or smell anything in days. My husband picked our daughter up the other day and said, "Whew, she STINKS!" She had just been crawling all over me and had been pooping the whole time. I walked right up and took a big ol' whiff of her diaper with my nose pressed against her fleece-covered bum. Nothing. I couldn't smell even a hint of poo! Which is nice (and I got saddled with changing her as a result, not so nice) but it also means I have to visually check her diaper every 1/2 hour to make sure she hasn't pooped. Oh, it's been fun, let me tell ya!

On the plus side, since I also can't taste anything, my appetite has been fairly nil. So I've lost nearly 10 pounds already. I force myself to eat some toast in the morning and then usually have some soup for dinner. I have been snacking on a few Ruffles potato chips since they feel good and scratchy on my throat and I can almost taste the saltiness, but I can still only eat a few. You know you are sick when you don't even have an appetite for potato chips!

Anyway, want to hear about my knockers? I thought so!

My three year old has been obsessed with his Diego adventurer/explorer kit lately. He is probably at least six months to a year behind his peers verbally, so sometimes it is hard to understand what he is saying as he is yammering intently to you. I kept hearing him in the other room saying "knockers." Since I was pretty sure he hadn't sneaked a copy of Playboy magazine into the house, I went to investigate.

He was leaning against the back of the couch looking intently out the window through his yellow Diego binoculars. He turns and holds them out to me.

"Look, Mom! My knockers!"

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Kids Are Funny!

So the baby and our five-year-old had been playing upstairs. I'm not overly worried as I hear lots of baby giggles and no loud thumps.

Until later, when I realized that the baby's hair is gooey and she smells like lavender.

"Isaac," I call. "What did you do to Miri?"

"Nothing!" he calls back.

My husband, in a moment of sweet genius, takes a different tack.

"Isaac, come here. Why is Miri's head sticky? Did you put something on her head?"

"Dad," he says, matter-of-factly. "I was babytizing* her!"


Of cooooourse! It all makes perfect sense now! We can't have Miri crawling around without being babytized! Heavens, no!!

I just have to say that as often as my kids drive me nutso, they also make me laugh on a daily basis! :)

*Babytizing apparently means anointing her head with baby wash found on her changing table. At least he didn't use the butt cream.

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

This Is What Happens When You Get Up at 5 AM Every Freakin' Day


Dear Son,

Please sleep later in the morning. This way you can avoid these crash'n'burns in the middle of the floor surrounding by spilled Cheerios. Also, I'd enjoy sleeping longer in the morning.

Thank you,
Mommy

Sunday, February 1, 2009

The Impartiality of a Three Year Old

We took the kids over to my folks' house today. I'd like to say it was to watch the Super Bowl, but I'd actually forgotten that it WAS the Super Bowl, so watching the game over there was just a bonus. It was nice to see the game on my Dad's giant flat screen though.

None of us were die hard fans of either team. We decided to root for the Cardinals just because they'd never won a Super Bowl before. The boys spent most of the time in the living room watching a kiddie video and playing, but by the fourth quarter, they'd decided to move into the TV room to be nearer the adults. Mostly this meant standing in front of us, climbing into our laps and talking into our faces, and occasionally being distracted by a game known as "toss the stuffed animals down the stairs over and over."

When the Cardinals made the long running pass for the touchdown that put them in the lead, we all were shouting and cheering. My three year old runs over and starts wildly clapping and spinning in circles doing a crazy dance. It was so precious.

However, we soon realized his joy was not specifically for the Cardinals, because when the Steelers then scored a touchdown minutes later, he clapped enthusiastically and yelled, "Yay! You DID it!"

Which really drove home the point that sometimes it is important to not choose sides, but just to be encouraging and supportive of everyone and cheer them all when they do well! :)

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

One Way Cell Phones Have Changed the World

I don't really have anything against cell phones - much. I mean, they are handy in an emergency, even if they are annoying in public restrooms (seriously - how difficult is it to relieve your bodily functions and then call your BFF Tammy?) A cell phone is great if you are at the grocery store and can't remember if you have enough olive oil in the cupboard for that dish you were going to make for dinner and your husband is home giving the kids a bath so you get to actually shop in peace!

However this episode cracked me up and then made me realize how times have changed.

I had run to Target the other morning with my boys and I ran into my BFF Kim. This was unusual since I usually only shop in the evenings so I can leave my kids behind with Daddy and she tends to shop during the day while her kids are in school.

So we chat for a few minutes, even though we'd just had a playdate with our kids the afternoon before. Then her cell phone rings. Nothing unusual in that - it is becoming quite common place. But then I hear her say "Mom!"

Wait - didn't she tell me she was here with her mom?

"...where are you?"

Yup. Her mom had called her on her cell phone within the same shop in order to find her. Whatever happened to the days of parents and children hollering at each other across the top of the aisles? Oh, society! How you've progressed!

My friend walks to the end of the aisle and peeks out. "Mom, I'm eight feet away. Turn around!"

My favorite part is that while my friend just hangs up her phone, her mother properly says, "Oh there you are! Good-bye!"

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Speaking of Babies...

Miri likes to stand now, and one of her favorite methods is to hang off my pants while I'm in the kitchen cooking or making lotion.

Which was fine, until today, when I was still in my baggy flannels and hadn't tied them around the waist and she was "helping" me make some lotion and pulled my pants down! The sudden give of material startled her into letting go and she fell backward and whomped her head pretty good on the floor.

Poor baby, lying there with her head injury and her mama screaming in laughter with her pants halfway down.

The worst was that I lost my place while measuring and my scale turned off on me. So I had to pour the scent back into the bottle and re-measure.

Miri was fine. By the time I went back into the kitchen a few minutes later to stir, she was back at it, clinging to my pants - which this time were firmly tied!

Monday, January 12, 2009

And Then There Were Three!

Stop beating down my blogverbial doors! I'll give you the synopsis on our third and last child now!

Miriam was born end of March last year. I can't believe she is nine months old already. She has been our joy, truly the best-natured, happiest baby I've known, which I'm sure will come back and bite me on the arse when she is a teenager, hehehe.

Gulp.

Really, though, when you know this is your last baby, it sure is nice for that baby to be fun and a joy to be around. Miri is just so happy with life. Well, unless she is tired, hungry, or teething - but who isn't cranky in those situations?

She crawls like a fiend, pulls herself up on anything she possibly can, and has recently discovered the joys of walking, using her baby stroller we got her for Christmas. The look of impish joy on her face as she haltingly pushes that wee stroller around is priceless beyond words!

But it is obvious from that twinkle in her eye, she means trouble - and so we better be on our toes!

Sunday, January 4, 2009

Second Son, NOT Same as the First

When I found out our second baby was also going to be a boy, I knew theoretically that they would be different, but in reality, I totally prepared for the baby to follow in his brother's footsteps.

Boy, was I wrong! The adage "no two children are alike" is true. So very true. I am sorry I doubted you, adage.

Our first son had colic, and cried almost constantly (or that was what it felt like at least) for the first four months. Second son was a peach! He slept through the night after only a few weeks, and the best part was that he didn't wail for three hours before doing it, either. Isaac, even up through age two or three, took a lot of work to put to bed and usually still cried or fussed himself to sleep for a few minutes. Thad was so easy - you just laid him down and walked away. No fuss, no muss.

Of course, as Thad grew out of babyhood and into toddlerhood, the personality differences became much clearer. Thad is a very happy child, but on the rare occasions he got upset or mad, it was like a hurricane blew in, wreaked havoc, and then left - all in the space of minutes!

Thad is now three years old. He was a really late talker - in fact, he is still catching up to his peer level. We have had some concerns over his developmental delays. At 2 1/2 to 3 years old it is hard to tell whether he is just displaying extreme toddler angst or if there are deeper issues at hand. We've had evaluations done, but no one was willing to give a hard and firm diagnosis - we'd have to take him down to Children's hospital in Seattle to do that, and I am just not willing to put him through that yet. The evaluations done here were harrowing enough.

These local evaluations did qualify him for occupational and speech therapy, which we will start soon. They also qualified him for the public pre-school program aimed at children with developmental delays. He started the one-on-one prep class with his teachers in December and has done really well; we hope to integrate him into the classroom with the other children soon!

He is such a soft-hearted sweetie with a 1,000-watt smile! When he is adorable, he is the most adorable boy on earth. When he is cranky, you want to tear your hair out! I am not sure which son is more persistent - they just wear you down in different ways!

One of my favorite Thad quirks is how he will ask for something 23 billion times until you finally say, "Oh, Thad, would you like some pretzel sticks?" and then he will happily say, "Okay!" like it was all your idea - and a great one at that.

Another thing he does is say thank you - to everything. He'll be having a temper tantrum over watching a show and I'll get down and take away the DVD case as his punishment and when he calms himself down, I'll give it back to him and make him put it away. "Thanks" he says. Hahaha. Silly boy.

For a long time, he wouldn't give hugs, but he has now decided hugs are awesome, so he gives everyone one! He likes to reach around both your arms and squeeze with all his little three-year-old strength. I just love it!

I have a feeling that Thad will give us a hefty set of challenges that are completely different than his older brother's; I also think he'll bring us some of life's greatest joys. My heart swells when I spend time with Thad - he has that effect on you!

Friday, January 2, 2009

When Two Extremes Collide in One Child

So now that I've professed my dedication to writing about my family (please, contain your enthusiasm - it's embarrassing) I thought I would introduce my children, as they will most likely figure prominently in most future posts.

Let's start off with my first born. He is five. My husband's and my genes must have feared he would be our only offspring, because I'm pretty sure we genetically tried to cram all of us into his tiny little body.

He is the epitome of both our extreme personalities. He is mouthy (ahem, that would be me as a child) and he has anger and temper issues (Dad as a child - actually till college). He has an insane imagination and makes up so many stories (me, me, me) and he has an amazing artistic talent and draws much in advance of his age (that would be his daddy all over).

He is Mr Melodramatic (I have NO IDEA where in the world he could ever had mined his talent for over-exaggeration AT ALL. NO IDEA!) and he talks about 97% of his waking hours (and not surprisingly, 5% of his sleeping hours - and you should hear some of the things he says in his sleep! Hahahahah)

In fact, he is chattering away at me as I write this, even though, shameful Mommy that I am, I stopped listening about 10 minutes ago.

When I consider how much he has packed into his skinny-butt body at age five, and I multiply that by three in order to imagine what he will be like at age fifteen . . . well, let's just say I barely prevented myself from passing out and as soon as I post this, I will drop to my knees and plead with God that isn't how it works, because I can tell you right now if that's the case, one of us won't survive that long.

Thursday, January 1, 2009

New Year's Resolution: Blog More

So my New Year's resolution is to blog more. One way I can do that is to talk about my family, because I just find talking about making lotion so much more boring than actually making lotion - and I can always find something to say about my family life.

For those of you who hate personal drivel, pretend I am using metaphors for deeper purposes.

Here is what I have to say about today: I'm tired. Very, very, very tired. I wore myself out preparing for Christmas and then when I was at my lowest, I managed to get some sort of flu or virus. I take two to three naps a day (well, until my husband went back to work) and I am still bone-deep tired.

For a stay-at-home mom of three children ages five years and younger, I am used to being tired, but this is ridiculous. So my New Year's wish for myself is that I miraculously become infused with energy. Magically losing 20 pounds wouldn't be amiss either!












What do you mean I have to exercise in order to lose weight? Phthbthtthbt.